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Report which shows that the retail sector is particularly lagging behind in customer experience ( CX ) compared with the allindustry benchmark . However , retailers have the ambition to improve their CX strategies and recognise that organisational change is essential to make improvements .

Only 17.9 % of retail organisations have enterprise wide CX analytics compared to 26.4 % of the all-industry benchmark . One third ( 34.1 %) of retail organisations are aligning data capture needs with desired outcomes in contrast to 49.7 % of allindustry businesses .

In 2020 , most businesses experienced a shift in customer behaviour as consumers were forced online , regardless of their previous shopping habits , due to global lockdowns . As a result , retailers have experienced accelerated Digital Transformation , but their CX strategies have fallen behind .

“ The so-called ‘ retail apocalypse ’ did not begin with the recent pandemic but was exacerbated by it . For over a decade , consumers have fled to e-commerce providers which deliver the digital options they prefer ,” said Sheila McGee-Smith , Founder and Principal Analyst , McGee- Smith Analytics . “ In 2021 , traditional retailers need to step-up to the customer experience preferences of consumers or risk further extinction .” driving their Digital Transformation . However , NTT predicts that CX success will depend on whether businesses have a data-driven and well-documented strategy in place .

Without a clear understanding of customer behaviour , retailers are missing out on a huge opportunity to deliver a seamless CX . The evidence is clear – organisations with access to enterprise-wide CX analytics systems have reduced the percentage of dissatisfied customers to 21.4 %. The immense amounts of customer data that most organisations access , capture and manage from multiple sources is only set to grow in the year ahead too , highlighting the complexity of this challenge and need to tackle it urgently .

To remain relevant in this changing environment , retailers must be able to gather insights from data analytics that allow them to improve CX by :

1 . Implementing personalisation : 75.6 % of retailers have some personalisation available , but only 4.8 % of retail organisations can proactively personalise CX , which is about two thirds less than the global ( all-industry ) benchmark . Businesses need to meet and serve customers where , when and how they choose to connect . Personalisation is the crux of meaningful communication in the digital world .

2 . Engaging with omnichannel and automation : 61.5 % of retailers at best collaborate in part and 25.6 % don ’ t collaborate at all when defining customer journeys and designing CX . Automation goes a long way towards improving efficiencies to streamline and provide an enhanced real-time experience . This is likely to come with a greater adoption of chatbots and AI-driven natural language processing bots – which will increasingly undertake businesses ’ first and early-stage interactions with customers . As a result , 82.1 % of retailers report that more AI , robotics and digital programming skills will be needed in the next two years .

3 . Optimising and accelerating performance : Most retail organisations now see the need to evolve and be agile , with one in five ( 21.0 %) now proactive and growth-orientated and another half ( 46.8 %) open to change . To optimise and accelerate performance , organisations need a digital-first strategy that embraces new technology and allows them to adapt . x

Remaining relevant in a complex , changing environment

NTT ’ s all-industry research found that delivering a positive CX is a clear priority for businesses , with 70.5 % of organisations citing improved CX as the top factor

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